- Sebastian Fundora (152.8lb) and Ermal Hadribeaj (152.4lb) both made the 154lb limit for tonight’s WBC super welterweight title fight at The Chelsea at The Cosmopolitan in Las Vegas
- The card starts at 8pm Eastern (1am UK on Sunday), live on DAZN worldwide and on TNT and truTV in the United States
- My prediction is Fundora by stoppage between rounds eight and eleven, as his size and volume break down the unbeaten challenger
Fundora v Hadribeaj: Both Men Made Weight
Right then. Fight night has arrived in Las Vegas, and the scales have given us a clean start to the headline act. Sebastian Fundora came in at 152.8lb and Ermal Hadribeaj at 152.4lb, both inside the 154lb super welterweight limit, so the WBC title is on the line tonight at The Chelsea at The Cosmopolitan.
The card starts at 8pm Eastern, which is 1am in the UK on Sunday morning, so it is one for the early risers or the committed night owls. It is live on DAZN worldwide and on TNT and truTV in the United States. The co-feature has a big question mark over it after Brandon Figueroa missed weight and lost his WBA title, but this main event is a proper fight. I covered the build in my earlier preview, so here is where I have landed.
The Champion
Fundora is 24-1-1 with 16 knockouts, and he is defending his WBC title for the fourth time. He is 6ft 6in at 154 pounds, and that frame is the story. He is a southpaw who comes forward, throws punches from all sorts of angles and makes shorter opponents look like they are trying to fight in a phone box. Make no mistake, he is brilliant at making his size matter, and he has the volume to go with it.
The Challenger
Hadribeaj is the WBC mandatory challenger, and he earned this shot by winning the WBC Silver title in May by unanimous decision. He is 23-0-1 with 8 knockouts, based in Miami and originally from Albania, and he has said he will come straight at the champion. Credit to him for the attitude, because a lot of challengers would rather talk about a plan B.
The Problem With An Unbeaten Record
Let’s not beat around the bush: only eight knockouts in 24 fights tells me Hadribeaj is not a big puncher, and that is a problem against a man this tall who walks through shots. An unbeaten record is lovely, but it only tells you who you have beaten, not who you can beat. Nobody knows how good he is until he is in the ring with someone like Fundora, and tonight he finds out.
My Prediction
Fundora by stoppage, somewhere between rounds eight and eleven. Hadribeaj will be brave, he will land some shots early, and he might even have a round or two. But Fundora’s reach, volume and body work will wear him down, and the champion will close the show late. If you know, you know: when Fundora starts finding the body, the fight is usually over soon after.